


Happily Ever After

by ebbj9891



Series: In Quest Of Something [31]
Category: Queer as Folk (US)
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Gen, M/M, POV Justin Taylor, Post-Series, Trauma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-07
Updated: 2014-11-07
Packaged: 2018-02-24 11:05:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2579285
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ebbj9891/pseuds/ebbj9891
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gus wants to hear a story that Justin isn't sure he's ready or able to tell.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Happily Ever After

"... and they both lived happily ever after," I say, kissing the top of Gus' head. "The End."

"I liked that one," Gus says, cuddling into my side. "I like stories with happy endings."

"Mmm-hmm," I murmur, watching his fingers drag over the illustration of the prince and princess in a fascinated caress. Thank god he's finally calm - it's storming like crazy outside and the frequent bursts of thunder and lightning have been making him nervous all night. Add that to Brian being away and Gus missing him like crazy, and we haven't had the easiest of evenings. I'm utterly exhausted now and being bundled up in bed isn't helping; I feel like I'm about to drop at any moment. "Hey, how about-"

Before I can suggest that we turn in for the night, Gus bolts upright and reaches for his stockpile of picture books that he's brought into bed with us.

"I want another one," Gus commands loftily, sifting through the stack energetically. Bedtime clearly isn't anywhere on the horizon. "Not this one, not this one, maybe this one-"

He throws the 'maybe' one at me and I just barely manage to catch it before it whacks me in the face. 

"-not this one, or this one..." Gus harumphs unhappily. "I'm running out of books."

"If we get an early night tonight," I suggest, hoping against hope, "We could get up early tomorrow and hit the bookshop."

Gus pauses and glances at me thoughtfully. "Really?"

"Really," I promise. "We can go to that one you like on 18th street and choose out some new ones."

"Okay!" Gus beams at me. "But first, you tell me a story."

I laugh softly, amused by his very Kinneyesque persistence. "Okay, I'll tell you a story. What story do you want to hear?"

"I want to hear..." he hums thoughtfully, then dives into my arms. I've grown used to Gus' hug attacks, so it's not that that knocks the breath out of me; it's what he says as he launches himself at me. Grinning exuberantly, he exclaims, "The prom night story!"

My throat feels like it's about to close up. It's a struggle to speak; all I can manage to get out is, "The what?" 

Gus rests his head on my shoulder and gazes up at me dreamily. "Daddy told me once that you two danced at prom. I want to hear  _that_ story."

"Oh," I say, unable to produce any other words.

"Oh," Gus echoes, smiling at me. He's absolutely none the wiser to the panic burgeoning within me. "Tell me about you and daddy dancing, Jus."

It's amazing I can come up with anything, what with Gus' eyes pinned to me with intensity far beyond his six-and-a-half years. I'd like to say I experience a spark of genius, but it's really more like a spark of cowardice. Forcing a smile and injecting my voice with false cheer, I ask, "You know who tells that story really well?"

"Who?"

"Aunty Daphne."

"Huh," Gus says, not seeming entirely convinced.

"And you know who's coming to New York tomorrow?"

His eyes widen with excitement. "Who?!"

"Aunty Daphne! She can tell you the prom story then."

"Yay!" Gus giggles and flops down onto his side of the bed. "I can't wait. I'm going to go to sleep  _right now_ so Daphne can get here sooner."

 _Miracle of miracles,_ I think to myself, almost collapsing with relief. Gus grabs my arm and tugs me close. I lean across him and switch the light off, then hug him snugly to me. Outside, rain is crashing down alongside heaving bursts of thunder and vivid flashes of lightning. The apartment is warm, but the sound of the storm paired with my rising panic leaves me cold. I snuggle up to Gus and tug the blankets securely around us.

"Night, Jus," he murmurs, the words drooping with sleepiness.

"Night, Gus," I reply, kissing his forehead. I wind my arms around him tight and wait for him to fall asleep.

*

As soon as Gus is sound asleep, I sneak out of bed and take my phone into the living room so I can call Daph. While I wait for her to pick up, I stare at the closed bedroom door at the end of the hall, wary that Gus and storms make for a poor pairing. I don't want him to wake up, and I especially don't want him to wake up and wander in here in the middle of this call.

Daph answers the call cheerfully. "Hey, Justin, guess-"

I can't wait a moment longer; I cut right to the chase and interject, "Daph, I need you to come to New York."

Her cheerful tone disappears. "Huh?"

"I need you to come to New York," I repeat adamantly, "Tomorrow. I'll pay you back for the ticket, I just need you to be here."

"What's going on?"

"Gus wants to know about prom night," I say, wincing at the obvious strain in my voice. "And since I don't know that story, I need you to tell it to him."

"You know that story," Daphne says slowly. "I've told you that story a thousand times."

"It's not the same! You know what Gus is like. He's not just going to want the story, he's going to have a squillion questions that I won't know the answers to!"

She's silent for a spell. Finally, she asks curiously, "What about Brian? He knows the story."

"Brian's busy," I retort. "You're not. You literally just told me yesterday that you're free this weekend, right?"

"Right..."

"Right. So if you have ever loved me or cared about me AT ALL, you will get your ass to New York tomorrow." I pause, then add, "Oh, and I think it would be best if this stayed between the two of us for now. Okay?"

"Okay," she says, her tone slightly odd. "I'll see you tomorrow."

*

Even with Gus cuddled up with me, I don't get a very good night's sleep. Every time my eyes fall shut, I'm struck with an onslaught of fragmented flashes, things from that night that I can vaguely recall, but not quite. Brian laughing happily. The sensation of being spun. The distant echo of that cheesy old love song.

Brian screaming my name. The bat swinging towards me. A burst of intense pain, then darkness.

As anxiety ripples through me, I close my eyes and burrow closer to Gus. Snuggling with him is ordinarily one of my happiest places, but tonight it fails to offer any respite. I'm beyond relieved when he wakes up bright and early at 6am and instantly flies into full-energy mode. I try my best to match it and we spend the day running around town, shopping for new books and preparing for Daph's impending arrival. One would think it would wear Gus out, to be running full pelt from 6am onwards, but his energy is ceaseless. By 3pm he's more hyper than ever. When a knock sounds at the door, he squeals and hurtles towards it, scrambling to unlock it. Since he's still too short to reach most of them, I step in and unlock the higher latches. Meanwhile, Gus hops around, urging excitely, "Open it, open it, open it, I want to see Aunty Daphne!"

"Okay, Gussy." I heave open the door and there's Daph... and Brian. Shit. 

 _"Daddy!"_ Gus shrieks, bypassing Daph and flinging himself into Brian's arms. "What are you doing here?!"

That's one hell of a good question. Brian swings Gus back and forth and announces, "I heard that Aunty Daphne was visiting and I couldn't resist joining her."

I wrap my arms around Daph and whisper in her ear, "I am going to kill you."

"No, you're not," she says dismissively. "You know I know best, and believe me, Justin Taylor - this is for the best. Besides, genius, he was with me when you called and I had you on speaker phone!"

I glance at Brian. He stares back with an unreadable expression. Something tells me that my parenting privileges are at high risk of being revoked. I look away and pull out of Daph's embrace, feeling ill with trepidation. Brian's gaze stays pinned to me as he carries Gus inside, only flicking away when he carefully sets Gus down. 

"Sonny Boy," Brian says brightly, "Aren't you forgetting to say hello to someone?"

Gus immediately hurls himself at Daphne. She catches him neatly and hugs him tight. Gus kisses her cheek and starts rambling on about all the plans we've made for the evening, all of which have been masterfully designed to thank Daph for showing up like this.

"Can I see you for a moment?" Brian asks, raising his eyebrows at me. Then he turns on his heel and marches off into the bedroom. I follow with my tail between my legs. As I sit down on the bed, Brian closes the door and locks it. He leans against it for a moment, regarding me solemnly. "What happened?"

"He wanted to hear about prom and I didn't know what to do." I wrap my arms around myself, but it offers little comfort. "I'm sorry. I should have called you, but you've been so busy, and I didn't want to freak you out... I thought Daph was a safer bet."

He continues to stare at me with that utterly unreadable expression. Perhaps if I had more energy, I might be able to decipher it, but I'm so tired and overwhelmed. So I suppose I'll just have to ask him. Trying not to sound too desperate, I ask, "Are you mad at me?"

In a heartbeat, Brian crosses the room and embraces me. I melt into it, relieved beyond belief to be back in his arms. He kisses the top of my head and murmurs, "I'm not mad at you, you twat. Fuck, I would have called Daphne, too. I don't trust myself to tell him about that night."

That's exactly it: I don't trust myself. I don't trust myself to relate what happened, I don't trust myself to answer his questions, and I don't trust myself to know what he should or shouldn't be told.

"I don't know what to tell him," I admit. "It's not just that I don't remember it, it's..."

"What?"

"How much should he know?" I gaze up at Brian. "He's going to have to find out about what happened eventually. It can't stay a secret forever. Do we tell him now?"

Brian looks away, grimacing. With a sigh, he asks gently, "What do you want to do?"

"I don't know."

Meeting my gaze again, he shrugs and says, "It's up to you, Sunshine. That part is your story to tell."

 _It's yours as well,_ I think, but I refuse to say it. It's irrelevant right now, anyway, because there is no way in hell I want Gus to know about any of that yet. The anguished strain returns to my voice; I resent it, but I can't help it. "I don't want him to know. I'm not ready, I can't..."

"It's okay," Brian says soothingly, kissing my forehead. "We'll tell him the good parts. Rather, Daphne will. She's good at that."

"She is," I agree, running my hands up and down his sides. "Better than me, in any case. What would I even say? I... I don't know what happened that night."

"You've heard the story."

"It's not the same."

He takes a breath; I feel it shudder unsteadily through him. Seeking out comfort for the both of us, I hug Brian closer. 

Jo and I have been talking about prom night a lot recently. For the most part, we've discussed my failure to adequately cope with what happened. She believes I still have a long way to go, which I'm quite inclined to agree with. I haven't said as much to Brian, but I'm worried he's in the same position: stranded somewhere between coping and not coping. He still has nightmares, sometimes. There are still little things that trip him up. Like the other morning, in the shower - he was washing my hair, massaging my scalp slowly and sensually, when his fingers brushed over the scar. It's so slight now that I often forget it's there at all; I think he had almost forgotten, too. His fingers stilled, stayed pressed to it for a while, and then he kissed my shoulder and excused himself, claiming he had to get to work. By the time I had rinsed off and was out of the shower, he was gone.

That's what I'm expecting will happen now. He'll probably kiss me, then make some excuse to leave, so he can go and get some space. Despite prom night belonging to both of us, Brian is still incredibly private about it at times. I can understand that. I've accepted it, to an extent. So, in anticipation of his departure, I brace myself, silently promising myself:  _It'll be okay, he just needs space._

But apparently he doesn't. Brian loops an arm around me and joins his right hand with my left. Pressing his lips to my temple, he whispers, "It went something like this."

And then we're dancing. This  _really_ knocks the breath out of me. I'm utterly stunned as he gently sways us, to and fro, so that we're embracing and dancing, dancing and embracing. 

"Just so you know," Brian says lightly, tilting my chin up so he can press a kiss to my lips. Then he takes my hand and urges, "Let's go save Daphne from Sonny Boy. He's too high-energy for one person to handle on their own."

"You're telling me," I mutter, fighting a yawn. Brian hums sympathetically and squeezes my hand. "Okay, let's go."

*

We spend the afternoon at the movies and then go for dinner at Daph's favourite restaurant. It achieves precisely what I had hoped it would - it distracts Gus from the issue of prom night until we're back at the apartment and it's time for him to go to bed. At that point, it's like someone's flipped a switch - he goes from having forgotten all about prom night to being utterly fixated on it. Getting him to take a bath and brush his teeth is almost impossible. He bounces around, begging and begging to hear the story, not relenting until Daph threatens to not tell the story at all. Then he bolts into the bathroom and gets to work, while the three of us wait in his bedroom. Daph sits down cross-legged at the head of his bed, while Brian settles at the foot. I pat his leg and he moves, letting me pool lazily into his arms. I glance at Daph and catch her smiling at us fondly. I smile back, just as Gus comes bounding into the room. He screeches to a halt and stares at me and Brian, looking most displeased.

"You stole my spot," Gus grouches, scowling at me.

I shrug at him. "I didn't know this was your spot."

Gus stomps his foot on the ground. "That is _always_ my spot!"

"Sunshine got here first," Brian says placidly. "Mind your manners, kiddo."

"Gussy, come here," Daph calls, patting the spot next to her. He tosses another filthy look my way and scurries over to her. Instead of sitting next to her, he curls up in her lap and rests his head on her shoulder. She smiles and wraps her arms around him. "Okay, storytime."

"Begin it the proper way," Gus pleads, batting his lashes at her. "Begin it the way that all fairy-tales begin."

"How does that go?" Daph asks, feigning cluelessness. "Justin?"

"I have no idea," I shrug, stifling my laughter.

"Hmmm." Daph smiles sweetly at Brian and asks, "Brian, do you know?"

"Daddy knows!" Gus nods his head rapidly. "Daddy, tell them."

I turn my head to glance at Brian. He throws a very withering look my way and then Daph's, then says reluctantly, "Once upon a time..."

"Thanks, Bri," Daph says, grinning at him. "Okay, once upon a time, it was prom night..."

I always love hearing Daph's rendition of the purportedly magical evening that was prom night. I've heard her tell it countless times and never tire of it. Tonight, though, is something else. Brian keeps me cradled in his arms, stroking his hand lightly over my chest. Gus is utterly enthralled by Daph's storytelling and stares at her in fascination, grinning bigger and bigger as the story progresses. At one point, when Daph describes Brian spinning me, Gus says happily, "I can almost see it."

I can, too. That's one of the best parts of hearing Daph tell this story, is that she does so in such a way that I can very nearly envisage it. Paired with the few vague recollections I have of that night, it's almost as good as remembering the whole thing.

Finally, after a truly lovely retelling, Daph concludes, "And then they kissed. It was the most romantic kiss ever. Everyone could see that they were so in love. And that's the story of prom night! The End."

Gus sighs blissfully. "That was the best story _ever_. But you didn't end it properly!"

"Didn't I?"

"Nope!" He grabs Daph's sleeve and tugs on it urgently. "End it properly, Daphne."

Daph frowns and purses her lips. "How do I end it properly?"

"Yeah, what's the proper way to end it?" I ask, and we exchange a smirk.

With a long-suffering sigh, Gus grumbles, "Daddy,  _tell them."_

Brian gives me a squeeze, likely trying to ward off my barely-contained laughter, then says quietly, "And we lived happily ever after."

I tilt my head and kiss his cheek. "Sounds good to me."

He gives me a look, but I'm sure I spy a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. I kiss that space softly and watch his smile flourish.

"I want to hear it again," Gus says, grinning at Daph. "Tell it again."

"Okay," she agrees, "But first say goodnight to daddy and Justin. It's their bedtime."

The mere mention of bedtime makes me woozy. My lack of sleep from last night has well and truly caught up to me - now I'm _really_ ready to drop. Unfortunately, Gus seems to have other plans.

"Nuh-uh," he refuses, pouting. "I want them to hear it again, too."

Without skipping a beat, Daph offers, "If they stay, I'll tell it once more. Or, if you let them go to bed, I'll tell it twice more. What's it going to be?"

Gus pauses momentarily, then beams radiantly and cries excitedly, "Twice more, twice more, twice more!"

"Twice more," Daph confirms with a nod. "Say goodnight, then."

"Goodnight," Gus says, not even looking at Brian and I. "See you in the morning."

Brian sighs, then dives at Gus and scoops him up, tossing him in the air, then catching him and bundling him up in a tight hug. Laughing over the sound of Gus' excited shrieks, Brian growls in Gus' ear, "What kind of atrocious 'goodnight' was that, kiddo?"

"A really, really, super terrible one," Gus admits sheepishly. "Sorry, daddy."

He kisses Brian and says a proper goodnight, then offers me the same. I hug him close and whisper, "I love you, buddy."

"Love you, too," Gus mumbles, squeezing me. "Sleep tight."

"We will," I say, hoping that it's the truth. I reach over and touch Daph's hand, then mouth, "Thank you."

She smiles at me as Brian drops Gus down next to her, then blushes a little as Brian kisses her cheek. "Night, guys."

"Night," we say, and then make a hasty exit before Gus changes his mind, as he's wont to do. Hand-in-hand, we head to our room. I close the door behind us, but don't lock it. I doubt we'll be having sex tonight so there's no need to - plus, I'm kind of looking forward to Gus waking us up tomorrow morning, either with one of his hug attacks, or maybe by bouncing on the bed. 

I can feel Brian watching me. When I turn to face him, I can see he's at a loss. There's a wash of sadness across his face and his longing is palpable. Longing for what, though? For what was lost between us that night, or for something I can offer him now?

Maybe it's both. Maybe I can bring those two things together. Of course, there's no returning to moments once they've passed by (or if they've been cruelly stolen away) but I wonder if it's possible to recreate them. It won't be the same, but it would be something... wouldn't it?

"It was kind of like this, right?" I step in close and join our hands. Brian gazes at me intensely, then slips his arm neatly around my waist. I kiss the corner of his mouth again, very tenderly, then bring my free hand to rest at the nape of his neck. Cheek-to-cheek, we remain that way: dancing and embracing, embracing and dancing. I don't think either of us really believe in happily ever afters, but this... this seems close enough.

**The End**

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this :) If you did, stay tuned as I intend to follow this up soon with a fic set some years later, when Gus discovers how prom night really ended...


End file.
